1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to medical devices and methods, and in particular, surgical instruments configured to weld and/or incise tissue.
2. Description of the Related Art
In various open, endoscopic, and/or laparoscopic surgeries, for example, it may be necessary to coagulate, seal, and/or fuse tissue. One means of sealing tissue relies upon the application of electrical energy to tissue captured within an end effector of a surgical instrument in order to cause thermal effects within the tissue. Various mono-polar and bi-polar radio frequency (Rf) surgical instruments and surgical techniques have been developed for such purposes. In general, the delivery of Rf energy to the captured tissue elevates the temperature of the tissue and, as a result, the energy can at least partially denature proteins within the tissue. Such proteins, such as collagen, for example, may be denatured into a proteinaceous amalgam that intermixes and fuses, or “welds”, together as the proteins renature. As the treated region heals over time, this biological “weld” may be reabsorbed by the body's wound healing process.
In certain arrangements of a bi-polar radiofrequency surgical instrument, the surgical instrument can comprise opposing first and second jaws, wherein the face of each jaw can comprise an electrode. In use, the tissue can be captured between the jaw faces such that electrical current can flow between the electrodes in the opposing jaws and through the tissue positioned therebetween. Such instruments may have to seal or “weld” many types of tissues, such as anatomic structures having walls with irregular or thick fibrous content, bundles of disparate anatomic structures, substantially thick anatomic structures, and/or tissues with thick fascia layers such as large diameter blood vessels, for example. With particular regard to sealing large diameter blood vessels, for example, such applications may require a high strength tissue weld immediately post-treatment. The foregoing discussion is intended only to illustrate various aspects of the related art in the field of the invention at the time, and should not be taken as a disavowal of claim scope.